Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1887-01-14
A D0CTRlhAL DIFFERENCE.

AD0CTRihAL DIFFERENCE.
Eour Trustees of Kanktou College Re.
4 Because vi the Prevalence of tins
nIo ver Idea,
For some time past it has been rumor.
ed that there WIGS q division of oounseIs
in regard to doctrinal beliefs in the col.
iege here, and Wednesday four of the
members of the board of trustees resign
ed, giving their reasons therefor in the
following words:
Yankton, ID. I. Jan. 7, 1SS7-To the
Board of Trustees of Yankton College
Dear Brethren: In presenting our resig-
nations as members of the board OF
trustees of this college, we wish clearly
to place ourselves on record as to the
motives which lead as to take this step.
For more than two years we have felt o
growing anxiety in regard to the attitude
into which it seemed to us that our COL
lege was drifting on q question of vital
Importance to the churches, and the in
~terests OF Ohrist's kingdom throughout
the world.
What has seemed to us an u~nscriptural
and false doctrine, recently characterized
by the American board Us Dangerous,
divisive, perversive and diligently propo.
gated" has apparently been gaining
ground In the management of the COL
lege. Or, ut least, through the attitude
of the president OF the college, DR..
Joseph Ward, it has been made to o.
pear to be in sympathy with the so.called
New Theology" or Andover views.
Our president announced to the truss
tees that by his position taken upon
this subject in public, he had committed
the college to these vie WE, and that the
college was recognized to be In sympathy
with Andoyer. This policy We consider
to be fatal alike to the financial and
spiritual interests of the college.
The president has been urged to ADAM
don this attitude as dangerous, unwise
and unscriptural, but could not be per
suaded to do SO. We do not see, there
fore, how VIC can longer work with the
present policy without lending our aid
to the propagation of al error subver-
sive to the principles upon which the
college vas founded, namely, that OF
building up an earnest christian iustitu-
ton, planted on the truths Of Gods
word.
What appears to add to the
dangerous tendency of the college,
is the fact that the ole
professor known to be thoroughly in
sympathy with the historical faith and
opposed to the new theology view, has
sent in his resignation to take effect at
the close OF this year; while another,
who remains has declared himself, as
understood by us in q public examina-
ton, for ordination, to be cordially in
GU rnv,okhu Unit h tho shanru nc n Nf,kr.o
probation" for at least q part of the race.
This leaves the management of the
college practically in the hands of those
who are willing to commit it to a theory
which appears to us unscriptural and
dangerous. and is, we believe, a long
step down a descent whose swift and
logical conclusion is "universalism."
The president and other members of
The board do not appear to share in our
approximations of danger, and therefore,
in order that there may be no division
OF counsels, and that the president and
faculty may have a board fully In gym.
patty with them, it seems indispensable
that either they or We should resign,
s;aGG NC cannot @nsk
with the present policy.
If we are asked by the churches to
give an account OF our ste wardship, Or if
we should be censured for turning over
the trust committed to US, to those who
seem drifting beyond the bounds Of our
common faith, we can only say that to
attempt to change the policy now,
would not only necessitate radical
changes in the instructors. which q
minority csnnot make, but would per-
haps plunge the institution INTO the
rough seas OF a theological discussion
that would certainly oYerwbelm il.
Weighted down as it is by debt, it
would need but little theological CON-
trovefsy to engulf it. In the interests,
therefore. OF peaoe,and harmony, and
with the sincere hope that our fears for
Its doctrinal safety may prove eround-
less. We respectfully tender our resigna-
tions ss trustees Of Yankton college, to
take effect at once.
Hoping that this important trust now
in your hands may be administered under
divine guidance, we remain
Fraterpally Yours,
J. r. SANReRN,
Rev. O. F.. CLAP,
E. P. Wilcox,
| Rev. CHAs. SECCoMBR,